1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a method for displaying a progress state of data processing and a host computer for implementing the method. More particularly, the present invention relates to a method for displaying a plurality of progress states of data processing and a host computer for implementing the method.
2. Description of the Related Art
FIG. 1 is a flowchart illustrating a conventional method for processing data provided by a data supplying apparatus in a predetermined manner. The data supplying apparatus indicates an apparatus such as a scanner, a digital camera or a multifunction machine, for obtaining data of a predetermined image and supplying the same. Although the present invention is not so limited by way of an example, the data supplying apparatus is described as a scanner for better understanding of the present invention.
A predetermined image is prescanned by a scanner (not shown) with a low resolution and displayed on a display unit at step 110. A user inputs user instructions for selecting a region to scan in the displayed image with a low resolution and for selecting an image processing method for processing the selected image region through a user interface at step 120. The scanner (not shown) rescans the image with a high resolution pursuant to the user instructions and a data processor (not shown) receives the scanned image from the scanner at step 130. The received image is image-processed at the data processor according to the selected image data processing method at step 140.
FIG. 2 is a diagram illustrating a conventional progress bar for representing a progress state of data processing in the method for processing data illustrated in FIG. 1. As illustrated in FIG. 2, a progress state of data processing in the scanning is displayed by using one progress bar. As described above, a conventional scanning comprises the steps of receiving image data obtained by the scanner at the data processor, and processing the received image data by using a predetermined image data processing method. However, the conventional progress bar displays only a progress state of image data reception which represents how much the image data is received, not displaying a progress state of image data processing which represents how much the image data is processed with the predetermined image processing method.
Even reception of the image data is completed, an additional time is needed to process the received image data with the predetermined image processing method. Since a user typically is not aware of a progress state of the image processing when it takes about several minutes or more than ten minutes to process the image data, there is a possibility that the data processor may be assumed as not being working even though the data processor is properly processing the image data. In addition, even if a user may recognize that the data processor is still processing the image data constantly, there is some inconvenience that a user may not be aware of a remaining time for completion of the image data processing.